Police say son hoped to resurrect father

Detroit police say a man arrested in the theft of his father’s corpse had hoped the body would return to life.

Lt. Harold Rochon told The Detroit News that the son is “very religious” and was “hoping his father would be resurrected.”

The 48-year-old man is in custody after police found the body of Clarence Bright in the son’s home Tuesday.

Rochon told the newspaper that the son bought a freezer to store the body.

Bright’s funeral was Saturday but the burial was delayed. The body was reported stolen Monday.

Bright’s son and another man were arrested Tuesday while inside a van with an empty casket.

Police say the body is being returned to the family for burial.

Police did not disclose a motive for the theft of the body.

“The details, his mental state — I can’t comment on,” Officer George Day said.

Bright’s final earthly journey was supposed to end Saturday at Gethsemane Cemetery on Detroit’s east side, but soggy ground from recent rain postponed the burial of the 93-year-old.

The casket was placed near a chapel or a mausoleum on cemetery grounds and remained there through Monday morning when it was reported stolen, said Leon Jones, a mortician’s assistant at Swanson Funeral Home, which handled Bright’s funeral.

“This is a very, very bizarre situation,” Jones said.

“Nothing seems to be wrong with the body,” Day told reporters. “Hopefully, the family can now get the body back and give it a proper burial.”

Police declined to release the names of Bright’s son or the 38-year-old man who was with him. They had not been charged and the theft remained under investigation.

Across the street, resident Terri Gaines, 36, said she didn’t have much contact with Bright’s son.

“He’s so quiet. He just goes in and out. He never had company,” Gaines said.